"Some of the same issues remain, but there's now a palpable change in the city of Allentown for the better," Dougherty said. "There's a lot of excitement with what's going on and, frankly, I'll be excited to be part of that."

A committee of the seven-person council tonight voted 6-0 to recommend his approval, the official vote for which will be held Feb. 15.

Dougherty departed from the Allentown job in September 2008 to work as deputy chief of operations at the school district of Philadelphia, the city where Dougherty hails from.

Dougherty said he now has improved communication and outreach skills than when he last worked in Allentown because he had to work with a larger and broader spectrum of constituents during his time in Philadelphia.

"In the end, my heart has always been in municipal government of some sort," Dougherty said tonight.

Dougherty is challenging that termination in court under the state's whistle-blower law. He previously said he forwarded emails about the matter from his work email to his personal email address for a record he was compiling for federal authorities about what he felt were unethical and illegal activities within the district.

His termination from the Philadelphia was not raised during tonight's confirmation hearing, although Councilman Julio Guridy said he had raised questions about it in private correspondence with Dougherty.

"I'm satisfied with your responses and I feel you'll be an asset to the city," Guridy said.

The managing director is responsible for operations and management of various city departments, assists in day-to-day administrative functions and speaks on the administration's behalf at council meetings.

Dougherty said he intends to take collaboration between council and administration to "a new level."

The salary currently budgeted for the managing director position is $96,752, which was also Bennington's most recent salary.